Nashikii's Story
by Sareya
Summary: Remember the Drifter Colony girl on New Bangkok? Here, she tells her story, everything from her father's soccer-playing days, to her little brother's attitude, to the day she and her small family finally landed on New Earth (Planet Bob).
1. Earth's Final Day

**Disclaimer**: Obviously, I am not the owner/creator of Titan AE or the characters therein. Inasmuch, I am not the creator of the plot line either.

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I suppose I'm lucky. In many ways, though one could argue that. My brother does all the time. Of course, he argues everything all the time. My aunt Reggi says it's his age. I say it's him.

Luck is in the eye of the beholder, I guess, though. I only say lucky because I remember. I remember the terror of watching our home world exploding behind us. I remember the uncertainty that followed, the shame, the rage, the hate.

My Name is Nashikii Anderson. I'm half African, which is wheer my name comes from, and half Irish, which is where my temper comes from, Aunt Reggi tells me. I'm twenty yeears old, and one of the lucky survivors of Earth's Final Day. I was only about five years old, but I still remember it like it was yesterday.

My father, Liutenant Johnathon Anderson, worked under Captain Joseph Korso and with Professor Sam Tucker, the creator of the Titan. It was a pretty big deal to him back then. It was EFD that he lost his life, in the battle with the Drej. But we didn't see him that day. No, we were with our mother when those bastards destroyed our home world and almost succeeded in destroying us.

Momma had only had Nicolae, my bother, a week before the attack. I found out later that because of Daddy's leave, he should have been home with us, but he'd chosen to go back to work. Aunt Reggi, who was momma's sister, says that's the way he's always been. He couldn't stand down or away from the action, he had to get right in there and do his part to make sure things went the way they were supposed to. I guess in the end it don't matter, though, because they wouldn't have let him on the escape pod anyway.

That morning started out the way any normal day on Earth would have started. Aunt Regina, who was only 16 at the time, had come to stay with us for a while and help out with Nicky, since I was too young. Apparently, she and Gramma didn't get along too well anyway, so it worked out for everyone.

I was watching cartoons that early afternoon, so our family wasn't one of the survivors that actually saw the attack on the television news. You can imagine my mother's surprise when she answered the pounding door to a uniformed man demanding we evacuate right away. She was smart enough not to argue or question, I remember that much, but I also remember sensing the man's growing impatience as she and aunt Reggi ran around like chickens with their heads cut off, looking for things for the diaper bag. I think the man felt a little put out when I was shoved into his arms by Reggi before she ran to pack our bags. He'd given them five very frantic minutes to gather everything that was of value to us.

The moment our bags were packed, he ushered us all to his shuttle car, which soon was heading at blinding speed toward the closest military base. It was then that we found out exactly what was going on, even if at the time, I was too young to understand.

The Drej has always had a strong rivalry with Earthlings and any who allied themselves with us. I was told later they weren't afraid of us, and really had nothing against us, but it was fear of what we as humanity might become, our potential, that caused them to blow up our home world.

The only thing I remember before taking off in the escape pod was that the base was absolute havoc. People were rushing all over the place. I was taken into Aunt Reggi's arms, and so much of my vision was blocked. On the pod, though, things were much quieter, however tense. I was plopped down by a white kid with bright blonde hair, and momma was just across the aisle with Nicky. Not five minutes later, the pods engine roared to life, and we lifted off not one damn second too soon. We must've flown for not more than seven minutes when both me and the white kid looked out our window to see Earth's destruction. Just outside Momma's window, we were able to see bits of our home world smash into and destroy our moon.

From that day forward, even a five year old kid like me knew that life would never be the same.


	2. Fond Memories

Before the Drej decided we'd become too big for our breeches (the phrase seems to fit. Reggi uses it constantly. Seems old world to me, but, eh.), life on Earth, for the Anderson family, at least, was pretty good. After Dad got the promotion to work with Captain Korso, things had gotten a little hectic, but it wasn't long before Reggi and momma had the household and our schedules in order and settled into a calm routine. Momma always liked routine. Said it was good for kids. Reggi always agreed when she said stuff like that. She said it gave us 'security.' At the time, I had no idea what they were talking about. What I wouldn't give for some of that routine and security back. 

Daddy visited every once in a while, when he could, which wasn't often at all. Reggi kept me busy enough that I often didn't have time to sit back and wonder why he had to stay away from us, though I didn't know it at the time. There was a lot she and momma did that I never took the time to notice. I was a rather self-centered kid, concerned only with what to play with and eat next. That, and avoiding naps. I _hated_ naps. I remember one day I hid in a tree about fifty yards away from the house to get out of taking a nap. I got my first real spanking that day.

But there I go getting off the subject. Memories tend to do that, drift from one into another without any real warning at all. Daddy did visit, and when he did, he got my full attention. And he well deserved it. I remember when he'd open the door, I'd look up from my Lego(TM) blocks, squeal with childish delight, though I would have argued had anyone actually called it that, and jumped up to run into his arms. He'd hoist me above his head, allowing me to slip from his hands perhaps three inches or so, and catch me like the strong superhero I'd come to see him as. I felt like I was flying.

His visits were brief, however, too brief for my own liking. He'd say goodbye to me as he'd tuck me into bed, kissing me on the forehead and telling me he'd be back soon. Then he'd slip away in the night while I'd sleep, after spending time with Momma that I now understand was precious to him. It was routine after a while, it didn't take long before it no longer hurt to wake up to no daddy. Of course, I'd long ago been told of the importance of his job, but that didn't stop the initial pain, especially with momma so focused on the coming baby.

Once Nicky had come, however, life flew into fifth gear. Reggi was there the day of his birth, as the doctor had called her upon momma's request once she'd gone into her 15 hour labor. I was forced to remain in the waiting room, the very _last_ place I wanted to be. It was white, it smelled funny, it separated me from my momma, and the people gave me funny looks. Till Reggi arrived, of course. She'd seen to Momma right away, then came to reassure me that yes, Momma was all right. I remember clinging to her for dear life, hiding my face in the folds of her shirt to evade the embarrasing stares of the other patrons.

Sometime that night, I'd fallen asleep in my aunt's arms, and had been somehow delivered to my own bed to wake up to a high-pitched screech coming from the livingroom. Within moments, I met my little brother, Nicolae, a positively ugly doll with too much hair and a scrunched up face. I had pretty much hated him on sight. During his nap, however, while Reggi watched TV, momma had sat me down in her room (I remember the most important things momma ever said to me were said in that room) and we talked about Nicky, me, her, and Reggi. She told me about how she felt when Reggi was born. She told me how they grew up...A little, anyway. And slowly, very slowly, an understanding of the sibling relationship my brother and I were to share began to dawn on me.

It wasn't as though we became instant buddies...But I stopped staring at him with a jealous look in my eyes. Instead, I seized my coloring books and escaped to the haven of my best friend's house, our next door neighbor girls' home. There I remained for the next few of days, only coming home to sleep. Momma didn't say anything, though Reggi attempted to talk to me about it a few times. I had ignored her.

The day before Earth's Final was the first I spent entirely with my brother, mother, and aunt. Momma said nothing about my near-week-long absense, only fixed Reggi and I a special lunch and allowed us to watch cartoons that day instead of trying to sit me down for another talk. As I think back on that, I regret how selfish I was, not being able to see the family I had for what they were. Luckily, however traumatic the experience was to be, EFD was the day my eyes opened, and I learned to cling to them with all I had.


End file.
